There are some special provisions for accessing information about the environment. You can use Freedom of Information legislation or the European Communities (Access to Information on the Environment) Regulations 2007 to 2018 (known as the AIE Regulations) to access environmental information.

The AIE Regulations require public authorities to be proactive in sharing environmental information with the public. They must:

• Tell people of their rights and provide information and guidance on exercising those rights
• Keep environmental information in a format that is accessible and can be reproduced
• Assign information officers to maintain lists of the environmental information held or else provide an information point that clearly shows where to find this type of information

What is a public authority?

A public authority is any organisation with a role in public administration and that holds environmental information. The definition of public authorities under the AIE Regulations is broader than under FOI legislation. This means that if an authority is not covered by FOI, you may still be able to get access to environmental information by using the AIE Regulations.

Public authorities under AIE Regulations include government departments, local authorities, commercial and non-commercial State agencies and regulatory bodies.

If an organisation refuses your request for environmental information on the basis that it is not a public authority, you can ask for a review of this decision.

What kind of information can I access?

The AIE Regulations allow you to access environmental information produced by a public authority, received by a public authority or held on behalf of a public authority. Environmental information held by private entities is generally excluded from the AIE system.

Environmental information includes information on:

• The elements of the environment, such as: air and atmosphere; water; soil; land, landscape and natural sites including wetlands; coastal and marine areas; biological diversity and its components, including genetically modified organisms; and the interaction among these elements
• Factors such as: substances; energy; noise; radiation or waste, including radioactive waste; emissions, discharges and other releases into the environment; any of which may affect or are likely to affect the elements of the environment
• Measures such as: policies, legislation, plans, programmes, environmental agreements
• Cost-benefit and other economic analyses
• The state of human health and safety
• Reports on the implementation of environmental legislation

In some cases you can be refused access to environmental information. For example, if releasing the information would cause harm to the person who provided the information or if it would harm the environment.

In general, a public authority cannot refuse to give you information about emissions into the environment, such as CO2 emissions or other pollutants.

There is no charge for applying for environmental information under the AIE Regulations. However, there may be a reasonable fee to cover the costs of compiling and copying the information.

Refusal of access to information

If a public authority refuses your request for information or has not dealt with your request appropriately, you can ask the public authority for an internal review of the decision. You must do this within one month of getting the decision. If you are not satisfied with the outcome of the internal review, or you do not get a response from the public authority, you can appeal to the Commissioner for Environmental Information (CEI).  The CEI publishes further information on how to appeal on its website.

You can appeal the CEI’s decision to the High Court but only on a point of law arising from the decision. An appeal to the High Court must be made within two months of getting the CEI’s decision.